The city of San Francisco has been immortalized in hundreds of books in every genre: the San Francisco Public Library (SFPL) keeps a Pinterest page of 81 titles and counting, as well as a “literary landmarks of San Francisco” list in its BiblioCommons catalog, plus separate lists for SF-based chefs and books for kids and teens. Below, a curated selection of reading for those ALA attendees who like to immerse themselves in a sense of place while they travel to the conference. Titles were suggested by Michelle Jeffers, SFPL’s chief, community programs & partnerships, plus LJ staff and LJ columnist Kristin Ramsdell.

Fiction

• Bennett, Jenn. Bitter Spirits. Berkley Sensation, 2013.
• Doctorow, Cory. Little Brother. Tor, 2008.
• Eggers, Dave. The Circle. Knopf, 2013.
• Freethy, Barbara. Daniel’s Gift. Avon, 1996.
• Gaffney, Patricia. Crooked Hearts. Topaz, 1994.
• Hammett, Dashiell. The Maltese Falcon. Knopf, 1930.
• Honneyman, Kay. The Fire Horse Girl. Arthur A. Levine Bks., 2013.
• King, Jay Caspian. The Dead Do Not Improve. Hogarth, 2012.
• Lee, Gus. China Boy. Dutton, 1991.
• Maupin, Armistead. Tales of the City. HarperCollins, 1976.
• Morgan, Seth. Homeboy. Vintage, 1990.
• Murphy, Pat. The City, Not Long After. Random, 1989.
• San Francisco Noir 2: The Classics. Akashic, 2009. ed. by Peter Maravelis.
• Sloan, Robin. Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore. Farrar, 2012.
• Tan, Amy. The Bonesetter’s Daughter. Ballantine, 2001.
• Tea, Michelle. Valencia. SEAL, 2000.
• Tenorio, Lysley. Monstress: Stories. Ecco: HarperCollins, 2012.

NonFiction

• Abbott, Alysia. Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father. Norton, 2013.
• Kamiya, Gary. Cool Grey City of Love: 49 Views of San Fransisco. Bloomsbury USA, 2013.
• Shilts, Randy. The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk. Griffin: St. Martin’s, 1988.
• Solnit, Rebecca. Infinite City: A San Francisco Atlas. Univ. of California, 2010.
• Talbot, David. Season of the Witch: Enchantment, Terror and Deliverance in the City of Love. Free Pr., 2012.
• Torres, Shirley Fong. The Woman Who Ate Chinatown: A San Francisco Odyssey. iUniverse, 2008.

Cookbooks

• Ayers, Charlie. Food 2.0: Secrets from the Chefs Who Fed Google. DK, 2008.
• Balla, Nick & Cortney Burns. Bar Tartine: Techniques & Recipes. Chronicle, 2014.
• Goldstein, Joyce. Inside the California Food Revolution: Thirty Years That Changed Our Culinary Consciousness. Univ. of California, 2013.
• Keller, Thomas. The French Laundry Cookbook. Artisan, 1999.
• Phan, Charles. The Slanted Door: Modern Vietnamese Food. Ten Speed, 2014. (For more on the Slanted Door restaurant, see “A Taste of San Francisco,” p. 42.)
• Waters, Alice. 40 Years of Chez Panisse: The Power of Gathering. Clarkson Potter: Crown, 2011.

Poetry

• Di Prima, Diane. The Poetry Deal. City Lights. (San Francisco Poet Laureate, No. 5). 2014.
• Ferlinghetti, Lawrence. San Francisco Poems. City Lights. (San Francisco Poet Laureate, No. 1). 2003.
• Murguía, Alejandro. Stray Poems. City Lights. (San Francisco Poet Laureate, No. 6). 2014.